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International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

Adopted and opened for signature and ratification by General Assembly resolution 2106 (XX) of 21 December 1965 entry into force 4 January 1969, in accordance with Article 19

The States Parties to this Convention,

Considering that the
Charter of the United Nations is based on the principles of the dignity
and equality inherent in all human beings, and that all Member States
have pledged themselves to take joint and separate action, in
co-operation with the Organization, for the achievement of one of the
purposes of the United Nations which is to promote and encourage
universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental
freedoms for all, without distinction as to race, sex, language or
religion,

Considering that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims
that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and
that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set out
therein, without distinction of any kind, in particular as to race,
colour or national origin,

Considering that all human beings are equal before the law and are
entitled to equal protection of the law against any discrimination and
against any incitement to discrimination,

Considering that the United Nations has condemned colonialism and all
practices of segregation and discrimination associated therewith, in
whatever form and wherever they exist, and that the Declaration on the
Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples of 14
December 1960 (General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV)) has affirmed and
solemnly proclaimed the necessity of bringing them to a speedy and
unconditional end,

Considering that the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of
All Forms of Racial Discrimination of 20 November 1963 (General
Assembly resolution 1904 (XVIII)) solemnly affirms the necessity of
speedily eliminating racial discrimination throughout the world in all
its forms and manifestations and of securing understanding of and
respect for the dignity of the human person,

Convinced that any doctrine of superiority based on racial
differentiation is scientifically false, morally condemnable, socially
unjust and dangerous, and that there is no justification for racial
discrimination, in theory or in practice, anywhere,

Reaffirming that discrimination between human beings on the grounds
of race, colour or ethnic origin is an obstacle to friendly and peaceful
relations among nations and is capable of disturbing peace and security
among peoples and the harmony of persons living side by side even
within one and the same State,

Convinced that the existence of racial barriers is repugnant to the ideals of any human society,

Alarmed by manifestations of racial discrimination still in evidence
in some areas of the world and by governmental policies based on racial
superiority or hatred, such as policies of apartheid, segregation or
separation,

Resolved to adopt all necessary measures for speedily eliminating
racial discrimination in all its forms and manifestations, and to
prevent and combat racist doctrines and practices in order to promote
understanding between races and to build an international community free
from all forms of racial segregation and racial discrimination,

Bearing in mind the Convention concerning Discrimination in respect
of Employment and Occupation adopted by the International Labour
Organisation in 1958, and the Convention against Discrimination in
Education adopted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization in 1960,

Desiring to implement the principles embodied in the United Nations
Declaration on the Elimination of Al l Forms of Racial Discrimination
and to secure the earliest adoption of practical measures to that end,

Have agreed as follows:

PART I

Article 1

1. In this Convention, the term "racial discrimination" shall mean
any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race,
colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or
effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or
exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms
in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of
public life.

2. This Convention shall not apply to distinctions, exclusions,
restrictions or preferences made by a State Party to this Convention
between citizens and non-citizens.

3. Nothing in this Convention may be interpreted as affecting in any
way the legal provisions of States Parties concerning nationality,
citizenship or naturalization, provided that such provisions do not
discriminate against any particular nationality.

4. Special measures taken for the sole purpose of securing adequate
advancement of certain racial or ethnic groups or individuals requiring
such protection as may be necessary in order to ensure such groups or
individuals equal enjoyment or exercise of human rights and fundamental
freedoms shall not be deemed racial discrimination, provided, however,
that such measures do not, as a consequence, lead to the maintenance of
separate rights for different racial groups and that they shall not be
continued after the objectives for which they were taken have been
achieved.

Article 2

1. States Parties condemn
racial discrimination and undertake to pursue by all appropriate means
and without delay a policy of eliminating racial discrimination in all
its forms and promoting understanding among all races, and, to this end:
(a) Each State Party undertakes to engage in no act or practice of
racial discrimination against persons, groups of persons or institutions
and to en sure that all public authorities and public institutions,
national and local, shall act in conformity with this obligation;

(b) Each State Party undertakes not to sponsor, defend or support racial discrimination by any persons or organizations;

(c) Each State Party shall take effective measures to review
governmental, national and local policies, and to amend, rescind or
nullify any laws and regulations which have the effect of creating or
perpetuating racial discrimination wherever it exists;

(d) Each State Party shall prohibit and bring to an end, by all
appropriate means, including legislation as required by circumstances,
racial discrimination by any persons, group or organization;

(e) Each State Party undertakes to encourage, where appropriate,
integrationist multiracial organizations and movements and other means
of eliminating barriers between races, and to discourage anything which
tends to strengthen racial division.

2. States Parties shall, when
the circumstances so warrant, take, in the social, economic, cultural
and other fields, special and concrete measures to ensure the adequate
development and protection of certain racial groups or individuals
belonging to them, for the purpose of guaranteeing them the full and
equal enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms. These measures
shall in no case en tail as a con sequence the maintenance of unequal
or separate rights for different racial groups after the objectives for
which they were taken have been achieved.

Article 3

States Parties particularly condemn racial segregation and apartheid
and undertake to prevent, prohibit and eradicate all practices of this
nature in territories under their jurisdiction.

Article 4

States Parties condemn all propaganda and all organizations which are
based on ideas or theories of superiority of one race or group of
persons of one colour or ethnic origin, or which attempt to justify or
promote racial hatred and discrimination in any form, and undertake to
adopt immediate and positive measures designed to eradicate all
incitement to, or acts of, such discrimination and, to this end, with
due regard to the principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and the rights expressly set forth in article 5 of this
Convention, inter alia:

(a) Shall declare an offence punishable by law all dissemination of
ideas based on racial superiority or hatred, incitement to racial
discrimination, as well as all acts of violence or incitement to such
acts against any race or group of persons of another colour or ethnic
origin, and also the provision of any assistance to racist activities,
including the financing thereof;

(b) Shall declare illegal and prohibit organizations, and also
organized and all other propaganda activities, which promote and incite
racial discrimination, and shall recognize participation in such
organizations or activities as an offence punishable by law;

(c) Shall not permit public authorities or public institutions, national or local, to promote or incite racial discrimination.

Article 5

In compliance with the fundamental obligations laid down in article 2
of this Convention, States Parties undertake to prohibit and to
eliminate racial discrimination in all its forms and to guarantee the
right of everyone, without distinction as to race, colour, or national
or ethnic origin, to equality before the law, notably in the enjoyment
of the following rights:

(a) The right to equal treatment before the tribunals and all other organs administering justice;

(b) The right to security of person and protection by the State
against violence or bodily harm, whether inflicted by government
officials or by any individual group or institution;

(c) Political rights, in particular the right to participate in
elections-to vote and to stand for election-on the basis of universal
and equal suffrage, to take part in the Government as well as in the
conduct of public affairs at any level and to have equal access to
public service;

(d) Other civil rights, in particular:

(i) The right to freedom of movement and residence within the border of the State;

(ii) The right to leave any country, including one's own, and to return to one's country;

(iii) The right to nationality;

(iv) The right to marriage and choice of spouse;

(v) The right to own property alone as well as in association with others;

(vi) The right to inherit;

(vii) The right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion;

(viii) The right to freedom of opinion and expression;

(ix) The right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association;

(e) Economic, social and cultural rights, in particular:

(i) The rights to work, to free choice of employment, to just and
favourable conditions of work, to protection against unemployment, to
equal pay for equal work, to just and favourable remuneration;

(ii) The right to form and join trade unions;

(iii) The right to housing;

(iv) The right to public health, medical care, social security and social services;

(v) The right to education and training;

(vi) The right to equal participation in cultural activities;

(f)
The right of access to any place or service intended for use by the
general public, such as transport hotels, restaurants, cafes, theatres
and parks.

Article 6

States Parties shall assure to everyone within their jurisdiction
effective protection and remedies, through the competent national
tribunals and other State institutions, against any acts of racial
discrimination which violate his human rights and fundamental freedoms
contrary to this Convention, as well as the right to seek from such
tribunals just and adequate reparation or satisfaction for any damage
suffered as a result of such discrimination.

Article 7

States Parties undertake to adopt immediate and effective measures,
particularly in the fields of teaching, education, culture and
information, with a view to combating prejudices which lead to racial
discrimination and to promoting understanding, tolerance and friendship
among nations and racial or ethnical groups, as well as to propagating
the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations Declaration on
the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and this
Convention.

PART II

Article 8

1. There shall be established a
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (hereinafter
referred to as the Committee) consisting of eighteen experts of high
moral standing and acknowledged impartiality elected by States Parties
from among their nationals, who shall serve in their personal capacity,
consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution and to
the representation of the different forms of civilization as well as of
the principal legal systems.

2. The members of the Committee shall be elected by secret ballot
from a list of persons nominated by the States Parties. Each State Party
may nominate one person from among its own nationals.

3. The initial election shall be held six months after the date of
the entry into force of this Convention. At least three months before
the date of each election the Secretary-General of the United Nations
shall address a letter to the States Parties inviting them to submit
their nominations within two months. The Secretary-General shall prepare
a list in alphabetical order of all persons thus nominated, indicating
the States Parties which have nominated them, and shall submit it to the
States Parties.

4. Elections of the members of the Committee shall be held at a
meeting of States Parties convened by the Secretary-General at United
Nations Headquarters. At that meeting, for which two thirds of the
States Parties shall constitute a quorum, the persons elected to the
Committee shall be nominees who obtain the largest number of votes and
an absolute majority of the votes of the representatives of States
Parties present and voting.

5.

(a) The members of the Committee shall be elected for a term of four
years. However, the terms of nine of the members elected at the first
election shall expire at the end of two years; immediately after the
first election the names of these nine members shall be chosen by lot by
the Chairman of the Committee;

(b) For the filling of casual vacancies, the State Party whose expert
has ceased to function as a member of the Committee shall appoint
another expert from among its nationals, subject to the approval of the
Committee.

6. States Parties shall be responsible for the expenses
of the members of the Committee while they are in performance of
Committee duties.

Article 9

1. States Parties undertake to submit to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, for consideration by the Committee, a report on the
legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures which they have
adopted and which give effect to the provisions of this Convention: (a)
within one year after the entry into force of the Convention for the
State concerned; and

(b) thereafter every two years and whenever the Committee so
requests. The Committee may request further information from the States
Parties.

2. The Committee shall report annually, through the
Secretary General, to the General Assembly of the United Nations on its
activities and may make suggestions and general recommendations based on
the examination of the reports and information received from the States
Parties. Such suggestions and general recommendations shall be reported
to the General Assembly together with comments, if any, from States
Parties.

Article 10

1. The Committee shall adopt its own rules of procedure.

2. The Committee shall elect its officers for a term of two years.

3. The secretariat of the Committee shall be provided by the Secretary General of the United Nations.

4. The meetings of the Committee shall normally be held at United Nations Headquarters.

Article 11

1. If a State Party considers
that another State Party is not giving effect to the provisions of this
Convention, it may bring the matter to the attention of the Committee.
The Committee shall then transmit the communication to the State Party
concerned. Within three months, the receiving State shall submit to the
Committee written explanations or statements clarifying the matter and
the remedy, if any, that may have been taken by that State.

2. If the matter is not adjusted to the satisfaction of both parties,
either by bilateral negotiations or by any other procedure open to
them, within six months after the receipt by the receiving State of the
initial communication, either State shall have the right to refer the
matter again to the Committee by notifying the Committee and also the
other State.

3. The Committee shall deal with a matter referred to it in
accordance with paragraph 2 of this article after it has ascertained
that all available domestic remedies have been invoked and exhausted in
the case, in conformity with the generally recognized principles of
international law. This shall not be the rule where the application of
the remedies is unreasonably prolonged.

4. In any matter referred to it, the Committee may call upon the
States Parties concerned to supply any other relevant information.

5. When any matter arising out of this article is being considered by
the Committee, the States Parties concerned shall be entitled to send a
representative to take part in the proceedings of the Committee,
without voting rights, while the matter is under consideration.

Article 12

1. (a) After the Committee
has obtained and collated all the information it deems necessary, the
Chairman shall appoint an ad hoc Conciliation Commission (hereinafter
referred to as the Commission) comprising five persons who may or may
not be members of the Committee. The members of the Commission shall be
appointed with the unanimous consent of the parties to the dispute, and
its good offices shall be made available to the States concerned with a
view to an amicable solution of the matter on the basis of respect for
this Convention;

(b) If the States parties to the dispute fail to reach agreement
within three months on all or part of the composition of the Commission,
the members of the Commission not agreed upon by the States parties to
the dispute shall be elected by secret ballot by a two-thirds majority
vote of the Committee from among its own members.

2. The members of
the Commission shall serve in their personal capacity. They shall not be
nationals of the States parties to the dispute or of a State not Party
to this Convention.

3. The Commission shall elect its own Chairman and adopt its own rules of procedure.

4. The meetings of the Commission shall normally be held at United
Nations Headquarters or at any other convenient place as determined by
the Commission.

5. The secretariat provided in accordance with article 10, paragraph
3, of this Convention shall also service the Commission whenever a
dispute among States Parties brings the Commission into being.

6. The States parties to the dispute shall share equally all the
expenses of the members of the Commission in accordance with estimates
to be provided by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

7. The Secretary-General shall be empowered to pay the expenses of
the members of the Commission, if necessary, before reimbursement by the
States parties to the dispute in accordance with paragraph 6 of this
article.

8. The information obtained and collated by the Committee shall be
made available to the Commission, and the Commission may call upon the
States concerned to supply any other relevant information.

Article 13

1. When the Commission has
fully considered the matter, it shall prepare and submit to the Chairman
of the Committee a report embodying its findings on all questions of
fact relevant to the issue between the parties and containing such
recommendations as it may think proper for the amicable solution of the
dispute.

2. The Chairman of the Committee shall communicate the report of the
Commission to each of the States parties to the dispute. These States
shall, within three months, inform the Chairman of the Committee whether
or not they accept the recommendations contained in the report of the
Commission.

3. After the period provided for in paragraph 2 of this article, the
Chairman of the Committee shall communicate the report of the Commission
and the declarations of the States Parties concerned to the other
States Parties to this Convention.

Article 14

1. A State Party may at any
time declare that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to
receive and consider communications from individuals or groups of
individuals within its jurisdiction claiming to be victims of a
violation by that State Party of any of the rights set forth in this
Convention. No communication shall be received by the Committee if it
concerns a State Party which has not made such a declaration.

2. Any State Party which makes a declaration as provided for in
paragraph I of this article may establish or indicate a body within its
national legal order which shall be competent to receive and consider
petitions from individuals and groups of individuals within its
jurisdiction who claim to be victims of a violation of any of the rights
set forth in this Convention and who have exhausted other available
local remedies.

3. A declaration made in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article
and the name of any body established or indicated in accordance with
paragraph 2 of this article shall be deposited by the State Party
concerned with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall
transmit copies thereof to the other States Parties. A declaration may
be withdrawn at any time by notification to the Secretary-General, but
such a withdrawal shall not affect communications pending before the
Committee.

4. A register of petitions shall be kept by the body established or
indicated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article, and certified
copies of the register shall be filed annually through appropriate
channels with the Secretary-General on the understanding that the
contents shall not be publicly disclosed.

5. In the event of failure to obtain satisfaction from the body
established or indicated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article,
the petitioner shall have the right to communicate the matter to the
Committee within six months.

6.

(a) The Committee shall confidentially bring any communication
referred to it to the attention of the State Party alleged to be
violating any provision of this Convention, but the identity of the
individual or groups of individuals concerned shall not be revealed
without his or their express consent. The Committee shall not receive
anonymous communications;

(b) Within three months, the receiving State shall submit to the
Committee written explanations or statements clarifying the matter and
the remedy, if any, that may have been taken by that State.

7.

(a) The Committee shall consider communications in the light of all
information made available to it by the State Party concerned and by the
petitioner. The Committee shall not consider any communication from a
petitioner unless it has ascertained that the petitioner has exhausted
all available domestic remedies. However, this shall not be the rule
where the application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged;

(b) The Committee shall forward its suggestions and recommendations,
if any, to the State Party concerned and to the petitioner.

8. The
Committee shall include in its annual report a summary of such
communications and, where appropriate, a summary of the explanations and
statements of the States Parties concerned and of its own suggestions
and recommendations.

9. The Committee shall be competent to exercise the functions
provided for in this article only when at least ten States Parties to
this Convention are bound by declarations in accordance with paragraph I
of this article.

Article 15

1 . Pending the achievement
of the objectives of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to
Colonial Countries and Peoples, contained in General Assembly resolution
1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960, the provisions of this Convention shall
in no way limit the right of petition granted to these peoples by other
international instruments or by the United Nations and its specialized
agencies.

2.

(a) The Committee established under article 8, paragraph 1, of this
Convention shall receive copies of the petitions from, and submit
expressions of opinion and recommendations on these petitions to, the
bodies of the United Nations which deal with matters directly related to
the principles and objectives of this Convention in their consideration
of petitions from the inhabitants of Trust and Non-Self-Governing
Territories and all other territories to which General Assembly
resolution 1514 (XV) applies, relating to matters covered by this
Convention which are before these bodies;

(b) The Committee shall receive from the competent bodies of the
United Nations copies of the reports concerning the legislative,
judicial, administrative or other measures directly related to the
principles and objectives of this Convention applied by the
administering Powers within the Territories mentioned in subparagraph
(a) of this paragraph, and shall express opinions and make
recommendations to these bodies.

3. The Committee shall include in
its report to the General Assembly a summary of the petitions and
reports it has received from United Nations bodies, and the expressions
of opinion and recommendations of the Committee relating to the said
petitions and reports.

4. The Committee shall request from the Secretary-General of the
United Nations all information relevant to the objectives of this
Convention and available to him regarding the Territories mentioned in
paragraph 2 (a) of this article.

Article 16

The provisions of this
Convention concerning the settlement of disputes or complaints shall be
applied without prejudice to other procedures for settling disputes or
complaints in the field of discrimination laid down in the constituent
instruments of, or conventions adopted by, the United Nations and its
specialized agencies, and shall not prevent the States Parties from
having recourse to other procedures for settling a dispute in accordance
with general or special international agreements in force between them.

PART III

Article 17

1. This Convention is open
for signature by any State Member of the United Nations or member of any
of its specialized agencies, by any State Party to the Statute of the
International Court of Justice, and by any other State which has been
invited by the General Assembly of the United Nations to become a Party
to this Convention.

2. This Convention is subject to ratification. Instruments of
ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.

Article 18

1. This Convention shall be
open to accession by any State referred to in article 17, paragraph 1,
of the Convention. 2. Accession shall be effected by the deposit of an
instrument of accession with the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.

Article 19

1. This Convention shall
enter into force on the thirtieth day after the date of the deposit with
the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the twenty-seventh
instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.

2. For each State ratifying this Convention or acceding to it after
the deposit of the twenty-seventh instrument of ratification or
instrument of accession, the Convention shall enter into force on the
thirtieth day after the date of the deposit of its own instrument of
ratification or instrument of accession.

Article 20

1. The Secretary-General of
the United Nations shall receive and circulate to all States which are
or may become Parties to this Convention reservations made by States at
the time of ratification or accession. Any State which objects to the
reservation shall, within a period of ninety days from the date of the
said communication, notify the Secretary-General that it does not accept
it.

2. A reservation incompatible with the object and purpose of this
Convention shall not be permitted, nor shall a reservation the effect of
which would inhibit the operation of any of the bodies established by
this Convention be allowed. A reservation shall be considered
incompatible or inhibitive if at least two thirds of the States Parties
to this Convention object to it.

3. Reservations may be withdrawn at any time by notification to this
effect addressed to the Secretary-General. Such notification shall take
effect on the date on which it is received.

Article 21

A State Party may denounce
this Convention by written notification to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations. Denunciation shall take effect one year after the date
of receipt of the notification by the Secretary General.

Article 22

Any dispute between two or
more States Parties with respect to the interpretation or application of
this Convention, which is not settled by negotiation or by the
procedures expressly provided for in this Convention, shall, at the
request of any of the parties to the dispute, be referred to the
International Court of Justice for decision, unless the disputants agree
to another mode of settlement.

Article 23

1. A request for the revision
of this Convention may be made at any time by any State Party by means
of a notification in writing addressed to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations.

2. The General Assembly of the United Nations shall decide upon the steps, if any, to be taken in respect of such a request.

Article 24

The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all States
referred to in article 17, paragraph 1, of this Convention of the
following particulars:

(a) Signatures, ratifications and accessions under articles 17 and 18;

(b) The date of entry into force of this Convention under article 19;

(c) Communications and declarations received under articles 14, 20 and 23;

(d) Denunciations under article 21

Article 25

1. This Convention, of which
the Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally
authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of the United Nations.

2. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit
certified copies of this Convention to all States belonging to any of
the categories mentioned in article 17, paragraph 1, of the Convention.